


The earning of Starscream

by BlushLouise



Category: The Transformers (IDW Generation One), Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers: Prime
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Fairy Tale Elements, Gen, alternate universe - Norwegian fairy tales, continuity mash-up
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-24
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-15 11:08:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29683044
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlushLouise/pseuds/BlushLouise
Summary: Rodimus is meant to bond to the heir to the throne of Vos. Unfortunately, the kidnapping of the heir's younger brothers have thrown a massive wrench into those plans. It seems there's no other choice than to go out and get the two princes back, right? After all, he can't leave Starscream sealed in that glass pyramid forever.
Relationships: Rodimus | Rodimus Prime/Starscream
Comments: 22
Kudos: 41





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to my Norwegian fairy tale AU! I've had so much fun working on this, and I'm excited to share it with you :)
> 
> I've pretty much played fast and loose with characters and continuities here, to find the characters that suit the fairytale elements I've used best. So there are a few IDW characters, quite a bit of TFP influence, a bit of G1 thrown in along the way.
> 
> For those of you expecting a lot of Rodimus/Starscream, I'm afraid the pairing isn't the main focus of this fic. It's tagged Gen for a reason :)
> 
> Lastly, I'll be adding character tags as we go along. There are quite a lot of background characters who'll make an appearance as the story goes on :)
> 
> Have fun reading!

_Once upon a time, there was a king in a castle, in a fair, fabled city called Vos. He had three sons, of whom the eldest was by far the most beautiful. The king grew on in age, and sought to see his eldest son happily bonded and with heirs of his own. A call was made throughout the land to secure a suitable match. From the East to the West the call was heard, and many tried to claim the young heir, but none were found worthy and they were all rejected._

_Finally, the call reached the city of Iacon. The Prime of Iacon was old and frail, and like the king sought to see his heirs happy while he still lived. He had three sons, two of whom were already bonded, but the third, he decided, would suit Vos well._

_And so, an agreement was struck between the king of Vos and the Prime of Iacon. The Prime sent his youngest son to Vos, with his blessing, to bond to the king of Vos’ eldest son so they could make each other happy. But it was not to be that simple, because nothing worth doing ever is. The road to happiness is fraught with peril and distraction. And so the young Primeling of Iacon had to face many dangers on his path…_

Rodimus had decided he’d never been in woods quite this dark and dismal. The forest seemed to stretch in all directions, trees tall and close together, the space between them so black that you couldn’t tell if the sounds that sometimes surrounded them came from birds or glitch-mice or hunting turbofoxes or maybe an ogre.

Magnus had said that was ridiculous, and that there weren’t ogres. At least not in these woods. Kup had laughed and told stories of the big woods to the south, making it sound like there were ogres and giants and dragons behind every tree down there, and claimed that the northern ogres were nothing to worry about. Springer had grinned and suggested they stray from the path then, hunt themselves some ogre plating for their armor, and Magnus had near had a conniption.

They hadn’t strayed from the path.

But aside from being dark and dismal, the woods were incredibly boring. And big. The trees grew too close to the path for any of them to transform, so they had to walk, which meant that a trek that could have taken three days had taken several weeks, and they still hadn’t seen the other end of the forest. At least they had plenty of fuel for the journey.

“How far to Vos, exactly?” Rodimus asked, for the third evening in a row. “We have to be getting closer, we’ve walked for ages. My pedes are getting ground down.” He leaned back, stretching his legs along the ground, as if to show how sore they were.

“They are not.” Springer scoffed at him. “The ground is far too soft for that.”

“We’ll be able to see the towers of Vos soon enough,” Magnus assured him. “It won’t be much longer before we’re out of these woods.”

“Eager to see your promised one, eh, lad?” Kup grinned. “I hear he’s quite the looker.”

Rodimus ignored his older mentor, as he often did. He even ignored Springer’s blatantly interested look. He was a little excited, true, but he knew better than to show it. There would be no end to the teasing if he did.

“Let’s set watches,” he said instead. “Are you going to let me take one tonight?”

“You’re going to have to.” Springer grinned again as he elbowed Kup. “This old mech near took a recharge nap in the glen when we stopped for midday fuel. I don’t think he can cope with another long watch.”

“Mind your manners, brat,” Kup grumbled, but Rodimus could hear the affection in it. They all could.

“I’ll take first watch,” Magnus said, ending the teasing. “Then Rodimus, Kup, then Springer. Mind the fire, Rodimus.”

Rodimus pouted. He’d only ever let it go out once. And he’d lit it again. Granted, he’d also lit parts of the surrounding forest on fire, but who could blame him? If it had been easy to control his flame-up ability, he reasoned, anyone could do it.

Springer always called him out when he said that kind of thing. Rodimus tended to ignore him.

Recharge was never easy in the wild, but after three weeks Rodimus had grown familiar with the sounds of the forest. He suspected he might even miss it when they finally got out of the forest and reached Vos and what waited for him there.

The woods, just as Magnus had promised, did not last forever. Soon enough they gave way to low, rolling grassland with large herds of animals grazing, small fliers darting through the air to keep watch on them. The younglings waved and whooped when Rodimus and the others drove by, and Rodimus made sure to always call out some kind of greeting. If everything went well, these would be his people soon.

In the distance, the fabled towers of Vos gleamed like bright spires of crystal.

::Let’s find an inn or something before we go to the castle,:: Magnus says. ::We’re not fit for a king’s company with all this travel dust all over us.::

Rodimus eagerly seconded the idea. He wanted to look his best, especially since his betrothed was considered a true beauty. Besides, he had grit in places he was fairly sure even Ratchet would never find. He couldn’t wait to actually be clean.

Thankfully, the lower levels of Vos were kind to strangers. Though the innkeeper gossiped with the patrons when she realized that Rodimus was yet another mech about to court the young heir. Rodimus didn’t bother correcting her and say that the deal had already been made, that neither he nor the heir had much choice in the matter. He just hoped that heir would be as happy about it as he himself was.

Finally, once they were back up to Rodimus’ standards, they left the inn behind and headed for one of the walkways that led up to the higher levels. After that they found an elevator, taking them even higher. Then a transport, to rise higher still.

“I wonder how many suitors actually saw the heir and how many just never bothered travel this high,” Springer grumbled. “You know I could have flown us up there faster than this.”

“You coulda flown Rodimus up here,” Kup corrected. “Not all of us.”

“Besides,” Magnus agreed, “you wouldn’t have known where to go. At least this way we’ll arrive at the front doors. I doubt they would have been happy to see us had we simply landed on their roof.”

“They’ll be happy to see Roddy either way.” Springer winked. “He’s too pretty for anything else.”

Strangely, the closer they got to the castle towers, the less happy the people of Vos seemed to be. There were frowns where there had been smiles on the lower levels, closed doors and empty walkways instead of crowded squares. The mood lowered until Rodimus felt pressed down under it, feeling like maybe his arrival wasn’t a happy occasion after all.

“I don’t think this has anything to do with you,” Springer whispered as if he’d read Rodimus’ mind. “But something’s definitely gone wrong somewhere.”

Still, they made it to the castle set atop the highest spire without incidents. The doors opened before them when Magnus announced who they were, and a servant appeared to lead them to the king’s audience chamber. His wings hung low, as if he was grieving. Rodimus could feel his own spoiler lowering in response.

The chamber they were led to was more of a great hall, though it was dim and cold and empty. There was a figure slouched on a throne at the end of it, beneath the large banners of Vos. Rodimus hadn’t seen any images of the king, but he still knew whose presence he was in.

He stopped at the right distance from the throne, and took a knee. Behind him, his companions did the same.

“Winglord,” the servant intoned. “Rodimus Prime of Iacon, and his companions.”

The king didn’t look up. Didn’t even move.

“Winglord,” Rodimus said, deciding to break the silence first. “My sire sends his greetings. It is his hope that this bonding will bring our two cities closer together. I am honored to be chosen, and I look forward to meeting the crown prince of Vos.”

“You’re too late,” the king murmured. “Simply too late.”

Rodimus looked up sharply. “Is the heir…?”

“Locked away,” the king sighed. “Locked away, and out of reach. Safe now.”

That was alarming. So was the king’s expression. He looked _shattered_.

“I think there’s a whole story for you to tell us, Winglord,” Magnus said carefully. “Perhaps we can help.”

Finally, the king looked up. “No one can help. But I suppose I owe you the story before I send you back to Iacon.” He gestured for them to rise. “Acid Storm, have refreshments fetched for our guests.”

The servant bowed, and Rodimus stood semi-patiently and waited for his return. It was clear now that something terrible had happened in Vos, enough to make the king want to cancel the agreement with the Prime.

Rodimus wouldn’t give up on that agreement without a fight, though.

The servant returned ahead of several others, carrying chairs and plates of treats and fuel. As soon as Rodimus and his friends were seated with plated selections of fuel in their hands, the king began speaking again.

“Not two weeks ago,” he started, “I had three sons. Now, I have but the one. The youngest of my sons was stolen from me while he was out flying, and his brother was taken when he tried to give chase. Now they are gone, lost to me, and cannot be found.”

Rodimus didn’t know what to say. Thankfully, Magnus did.

“This is grievous news, my Lord,” Magnus said, sounding as upset as Rodimus felt. “Is there nothing that can be done to retrieve them?”

“My guard followed their tracks for as long as they could. They are out of my realms now and out of my reach.” The king sighed. “All I have left is Starscream. And him, I will keep safe.” He looked at Rodimus. “I am sorry you came all this way for nothing. Please, enjoy the fabled hospitality of Vos for a few days, such as it is in these terrible times, before you return to your own home.”

Recognizing a dismissal when he heard it, Rodimus stood and bowed. “I thank you for your hospitality, Winglord, and I’m saddened by the loss of your sons. Any aid the Primacy can offer, we do.”

The king waved his words away. “No aid will make a difference. But I thank you. Acid Storm, show them to their quarters.”

Rodimus bowed again, echoed by his friends, and followed the servant out of the room.

“This changes things,” Springer muttered, quietly enough that only Rodimus could hear it. “What do we do?”

Rodimus didn’t really have to think on it. “We stay as long as we can. We work on the king. And we see if we can help somehow. If we can salvage this.” He really wanted to salvage this.

In front of them, the servant abruptly took a left turn. Rodimus scrambled to follow without stumbling over his own legs. The new passage was long and almost dark, angling slightly upwards.

“Acid Storm?” Rodimus asked. “Is this the way to our quarters?”

“Eventually, my Lord.” The servant glanced back. “Before I take you there, I wanted to introduce you to your betrothed. If I heard your words correctly just now, and you mean to help, you should know who’s waiting for you and what’s at stake.”

Rodimus exchanged a look with Springer. Apparently, not everyone had given up yet, even though it seemed the king had.

The hallway ended in a bright doorway, and they walked into a room lit up by pure sunlight that reflected off a thousand cut crystals. Rodimus couldn’t do anything but stare. He’d never imagined something this beautiful to exist.

And that was just the massive triangular crystal chamber dominating the room. He hadn’t looked properly at the mech inside yet.

“It’s the Glass Mountain,” Acid Storm said quietly. “It is one of the treasures of Vos, an ancient relic of our forebears. It’s impenetrable. After Skywarp and Thundercracker was taken, the Winglord had Starscream sealed inside.”

Rodimus stepped forward, and looked at his betrothed for the first time.

Starscream really was beautiful. Bright shiny wings, long elegant legs, a very pretty face. He was also obviously grieving. His finish lacked luster, there were traces of tears on his cheeks, and he was toying listlessly with a goblet sat at the foot of a small, bubbling energon fountain.

Rodimus waved.

Starscream stared, then stood and gave Rodimus a small smile. He took a few steps closer, and waved back.

“Sealed inside?” Ultra Magnus asked. “How?”

“The Winglord had Pharma put a galdr seal on it,” Acid Storm replied. “It will only open if Skywarp and Thundercracker return. And if they don’t…”

He didn’t have to finish the sentence. If they didn’t, Starscream would be sealed inside forever.

Rodimus gently tapped one fingertip against the crystal, and the gentle ping echoed around the room. Starscream frowned and shook his head. He stared hard enough at his crystal prison that by all rights it should have shattered, but it stood firm. Rodimus grinned again, shrugging, then mimed grabbing his sword and whacking at the crystal with it. Starscream laughed at that, though no sound could be heard. Acid Storm looked torn between horrified and amused.

Rodimus placed a hand on the crystal pyramid. Inside, Starscream did the same.

“This Pharma is your seidr master? Can’t he then just undo it?” Springer sounded almost offended at the idea that something just couldn’t be broken by brute force.

Acid Storm shook his head. “Believe me, we’ve asked. But Pharma doesn’t disobey the king. And the king have ordered that the Mountain stay sealed.” He turned to look at them fully. “If I get you an escort and the best trackers we have, will you try getting the two princes back?”

Rodimus sighed. He’d been fairly sure what he wanted to do, and seeing Starscream like this had just firmed his resolve. “Yes. We will.”


	2. Chapter 2

They stayed in the castle for a few days, offering their respects to the king and trying – carefully – to get more information out of him. It wasn’t much they were able to learn; the king was willing enough to speak of his sons, but he spoke as if they were already dead, and he absolutely wouldn’t talk about the day they were taken. Thankfully, Acid Storm and the others were more than willing to share what they knew.

“So you’re saying the princes were taken by two different groups,” Magnus said, in the evening of their second full day at the castle. He frowned down at the maps that were spread out on the table in Rodimus’ quarters.

Acid Storm nodded. “We’re sure of it. Not only because they were taken a few days apart, but they didn’t leave in the same direction.”

Next to Acid Storm stood a young flier called Slipstream, who had been part of Skywarp’s entourage on the day he was taken. “Not the same direction at all,” she agreed. “The ones who took Skywarp went south. We lost them somewhere around this area.” She placed a little flag on the map, not too far south of Vos. Then she picked up a second flag, and placed it much further west. “But Nacelle said that the ones who took Thundercracker were flying more west. They had to turn back around here.”

“That’s a bit of distance,” Springer mused. “Do we split up?”

“I’d not recommend it,” Magnus replied. “We’re not that many. And we might be up against formidable foes.”

Rodimus sighed. He hated just waiting around like this, but the planning stage was necessary. And Magnus and Springer were both very good at it. “Acid Storm, do you know why they were taken? If we know that, maybe we can figure out what we’re up against.”

“As hostages, we suspect.” Acid Storm looked grim. “Vos is not at the greatest of terms with all its neighbors. It’s also possible that someone was looking to snag themselves a royal spouse.” His frown deepened at that. “There’s another thing to consider. There were few witnesses, since neither prince had a large group with him, but the soldiers say the brigands didn’t fly like seekers. Or any flighted frame they’d seen before.”

That… wasn’t promising. Rodimus was suddenly wondering whether he’d gotten himself in over his head.

Kup grunted, breaking the silence. “West and south you say?”

Rodimus knew that tone. Despite the situation, he grinned. “What do your stories say, old mech?”

“There’s not much west,” Kup began slowly, “not once you’ve passed the border towns. But I knew a mech once who traveled those parts, and he spoke of a giant mountain range in the distance. He tried moving closer, but there hostiles there, darting around in the air around the mountain tops, and he was afraid they’d attack him.” He snorted. “That, and the weather was horrible. He kept claiming he’d never seen such thunder and lightning.”

“ _Thunder_ cracker,” Slipstream whispered, voice heavy with realization.

“Yes, that’d be my guess too,” Kup agreed. “Can he do anything, or is it just a designation?”

“There is some truth to his name.” Acid Storm pulled out a datapad. “He’s got a powerful sonic boom, and it has some offensive value, but it’s limited.” He put the datapad on the table, and Rodimus watched the vidclip of a blue seeker flying over a rocky canyon, and then a heavy boom and a shockwave shaking the cliffs beneath him. It was neat, sure, and probably useful, but not necessarily flashy.

“It might have been enough for them to want him, though,” Springer mused. “If they’re nuts about that kind of thing.”

“We’re making uneducated guesses,” Magnus said, “but it’s in the right direction. We’ll keep listening, and we’ll keep looking.” He looked at Kup. “What about the south, do you know anything?”

“Not as such, but there’s little good to the south,” Kup grumbled around his cygar. “What about Skywarp, can he do anything?”

“He teleports,” Acid Storm said, and Rodimus grinned. That was extremely cool.

“That’s a very valuable skill,” Magnus said, and Rodimus’ mirth faded away. “I can think of any number of reasons why someone might want him for that.”

“He’s too young to have much control over it yet,” Slipstream said. “He needs to see where he’s going, or there’s a real risk he’ll get stuck in a wall or something. But eventually, his tutors suspect he’ll gain enough control to teleport on coordinates alone.”

“That’s good to know,” Rodimus put in. “But it doesn’t really let us know what we’re up against.”

“Two shots in the dark,” Springer murmured. “Where do we start?”

“If you’d allow my input, I’d suggest you start with Skywarp,” Acid Storm replied. “Skywarp is still a youngling. Thundercracker’s strong, resilient. And much calmer. He’d want us to get his brother first.”

“Then tomorrow we gather our supplies and whoever’s coming with us and we go south,” Rodimus decided. “Primus willing, we’ll find him.”

He went back to Starscream that night, to visit. This time, he was armed with a datapad. Sound couldn’t get through the impenetrable barrier of the crystal, but according to Acid Storm Starscream was one of the smartest mechs in Vos. Reading a simple datapad shouldn’t be a problem.

Starscream was awake, lying on his back and staring up in the air. He sat up when he noticed Rodimus approaching.

“Hi,” Rodimus said, even knowing Starscream couldn’t hear him. Starscream smiled.

Rodimus held up the datapad, screen facing Starscream. “I’m leaving tomorrow,” he said slowly, waiting until Starscream had had time to read the words on the screen. “We’re leaving tomorrow. Don’t tell anyone,” here Starscream laughed and rolled his optics, “but we’re going to go get your brothers back. And then I’m coming back for you, okay? I’m coming back for you.”

Starscream walked right up to the crystal wall, a determined look on his face. He nodded.

“I promise,” Rodimus replied. “I’m bringing them back, and then I’m coming for you, and we’ll get you out of this crystal cage. Stay strong for me in the meantime?”

Starscream smirked.

“Fine,” Rodimus laughed. “Stay strong for yourself, then. I’m looking forward to getting to know you, Star.”

Starscream’s optics went soft, and there was a shy smile on his lips.

The next day, the left with little fanfare. The king didn’t see them off as much as offer them one last audience and give them his best wishes for the journey home. They had managed to keep from him where exactly they were going, and it hadn’t even been hard. The loss of Skywarp and Thundercracker had hit the king to such a degree that he didn’t keep track of his own kingdom properly anymore. His advisors and council intervened and tried to rule in his stead, but that wasn’t a permanent solution. They needed to get the two princes back and Starscream out of the Glass Pyramid as soon as possible.

Outside of Vos, they met up with Slipstream and a handful of other Vosians. All fliers, and to Springer’s obvious happiness one of them was a heliformer. Alpha Bravo was slower than the seekers, but then Magnus was slower than Alpha Bravo, so in the long run it didn’t really matter. And Alpha Bravo had been among the ones to track Skywarp as far as they could. He knew exactly where they’d lost them.

“Here,” he said, after a few days’ hard travel. “Over that ridge there. The tracks had gone cold by then, such as they were, but we probably could have followed them a bit further if the king hadn’t called us back.”

“Show us,” Magnus said. “Springer and Kup, go with him and see what you can find. The rest of us will camp here.”

“I thought you were in charge,” one of the other seekers murmured to Rodimus, winking to ease the possible sting of the words.

Rodimus snorted. He looked down at himself, and then at Magnus. “Do I look like I’m in charge? Trust me, we’re better off following Magnus. He’s a good commander. I still have too much to learn.”

The seeker nodded approvingly. “You’ll be good for Vos. Primus give that we get the princes back soon.”

Rodimus preened a little at the compliment. “Primus willing, we will.”

They set up camp while waiting. The Vosians wouldn’t be able to travel on with them, mainly because the lands to the south weren’t all that friendly to seekers but also because they needed to keep the king from learning they had gone this way at all. Acid Storm could camouflage five seekers and a heliformer being gone for a few days as a training mission, but not if they stayed gone for too long.

When Springer and Kup came back with Alpha Bravo, Rodimus and his friends would be going on alone.

Rodimus wasn’t too concerned about that. They could all take care of themselves - the Prime would never had let him travel with such a small entourage if they hadn’t all been capable warriors. He was more worried about getting lost and running out of fuel than he was about having to fight his way out of a scrap.

When Springer and Kup and Alpha Bravo came back, all three were wearing grim expressions. Springer handed Magnus a small piece of something. “We picked that up a few ridges over. It’s Skywarp’s colors. We’re definitely on the right track.”

It was a small piece of torn-off plating, looking like it should fit along the edge of a wing.

“And this,” Kup said grimly. “It’s covered in something, but this came off of a mech.”

Magnus took the piece of metal gingerly, smelling it. “It’s… smoke? And smelted iron.”

“And energon,” Alpha Bravo confirmed. “Absolutely reeks with all of it.”

“Then we head south until the ground opens beneath us, and the Pit is at our feet. That’s where we’ll find Skywarp.” Magnus didn’t look overly pleased at the prospect, but he also looked like there was no way he’d change his mind.

“Exactly,” Rodimus said. This was the part he was good at. “We’ve seen the Pit before. And we know what’s at stake. It’s not just us. It’s not just Skywarp, or even Starscream. It’s Vos as we know it. And I’ll be damned if I let Vos down, because then I’ll be letting Iacon down as well, and I won’t do that.”

“We won’t do that,” Springer corrected with a small smile.

Kup chuckled around his cygar. “We need to work on your speechifying, kid.”

Okay, so maybe Rodimus wasn’t that good at this part. Maybe he’d need to find someone to write his speeches for him at some point.

After a few more minutes of strategizing and transferring all the supplies Rodimus and his friends could carry, the Vosians left. Slipstream promised to keep an eye out for their return, which was kind of nice.

Rodimus was fairly sure he could grow to really care for Vos and its people. So he needed to make sure he got the chance.


	3. Chapter 3

It took them several grueling days to cross the rolling ridges of the badlands bordering Vos, even at the fast pace Magnus had them set. And after the badlands, it was a wide, endless desert. Rodimus knew it had to have an end at some point, because everything has an end, but it sure didn’t feel like it.

They headed south, as best as they could. The rust and dust and powdered, gritty metal wreaked havoc on Rodimus’ undercarriage, and he knew Magnus and Kup weren’t faring much better. Springer flew low above them, trying to spot any sign of life, any tracks, any end to the desert. But they were several days in now, and there was no end in sight.

At least they still had plenty of fuel and resources. And they were making good time, stretching their travel time long into the evening. Provided there was an end to this desert, they couldn’t be far away from it.

But then the sandstorm blew in.

Rodimus had seen bad weather before. He’d been caught outside in the acid rains, had seen the winds blow strong enough to scour the ground beneath it.

He had never seen anything like this.

Within moments, the visibility was reduced to zero. Springer was forced to the ground, and they all pulled closer together to stay safe.

“We can’t move in this!” Springer shouted.

“We can’t stay still either,” Kup called back. “We’ll get buried alive!”

There was nothing for it. They ended up shuffling forward slowly, hoping they were at least going vaguely in the right direction, pulling their feet loose from the building sands for every step.

Rodimus lost count of how long they’d been walking. He knew they hadn’t gotten very far, but at least they were still alive. In this storm, that was far from a guarantee.

“At least no one will see us coming in this,” Rodimus panted. He curled down to hide behind Magnus’ broad back, letting the bigger, more solid frame take the brunt of the storm.

“Or hear us,” Springer agreed, “what with the wind howling like it is.”

Magnus held still for a moment, listening, before shaking his head. “That’s not the wind.”

_“HellooOOOOoooOOOoooOOOooo!”_

There was a voice on the wind.

“Who the slag is out in this kind of weather?” Rodimus spat out a mouthful of sand. “Besides us?”

“Helloooooo there!” the voice called, and now they could see a shadow belonging to it, a curled-over shaped hunched low to the ground. There was some form of light flickering around the figure, and for a moment Rodimus wondered if this was one of the Fey – an Underlander, maybe, or an ogre, or something even worse. He took a tight hold of his sword.

But then the figure came closer and revealed itself to be a mech, hunched over against the wind. He wore a cloak with the hood up, and the light came from inside the hood. A closer look revealed a pair of helm fins that flashed blue whenever the mech spoke.

“There you are! Thought I’d never find ya! Come on, this way!”

Rodimus looked at Magnus. Were they really going to follow a stranger? In this storm?

“Come on!” the stranger shouted again. “This ain’t the kind of weather ya want to be outside in!”

Magnus shrugged and changed direction, following the strange mech. He had a firm grip on his own blade, and Rodimus got the message clear enough. They could deal with one mech, if he turned out to be hostile.

It felt like another seemingly endless trek through the storm, but it couldn’t have been too many minutes when the mech they followed suddenly vanished. Springer stopped in sheer surprise, but in a moment the mech reappeared, out of what seemed like a hole in the ground.

Huh. Maybe he actually was an Underlander.

“Come on down!” the mech shouted. “We can’t leave the passage uncovered for too long!”

Springer was in front, so he was the first to lower himself into the hole. Rodimus made sure to be the second.

There really was a passage. It wasn’t wide, and it seemed to wind a bit as it continued down, but it was still spacious enough that even Magnus would only have to bend his neck a little to get through.

The mech they’d followed straightened and threw his hood back. “Phew, that’s better. Close that doorway back up, would ya?”

Beneath the hood he was quite ordinary-looking. There was a mask over the lower half of his face, and the helm fins were certainly interesting, but he seemed to be a normal ground frame with an admittedly fairly nice paint job.

“How did you know we were out there?” Rodimus asked, as Magnus pulled a heavy metal plate back over the opening.

“Percy saw ya and sent me out to get ya,” the mech replied, which didn’t make sense at all. It hadn’t been possible to see more than a few paces in any direction. “Figured ya were lost, needed a place to stay until the storm passes.”

“We appreciate it,” Magnus said. He offered the stranger his hand. “I’m Magnus. These are Kup, Rodimus and Springer.”

“Wheeljack,” the mech replied, shaking Magnus’ hand. “Nice to meet ya. Let’s go deeper in, yeah? There’s fuel and baths to be had. You’re gonna want to get that grit out of your systems.”

Rodimus wasn’t going to reject that offer. Not when he had sand and dirt so deep in his joints he could feel it. He sped up, until he was right behind the mysterious mech. “So, who are you?”

“Told ya, I’m Wheeljack. Me and Perceptor, we live out here.” He patted the walls, like you would a trusty house. “It’s safer.”

None of this made much sense. “And… Perceptor?”

“Oh, you’ll meet him in a moment,” Wheeljack replied. “He’s waiting for us.”

Wheeljack seemed determined not to give Rodimus any actual information. Resigned to it, Rodimus decided to just wait until they’d gotten to wherever they were going. Maybe this Perceptor would be more forthcoming.

It wasn’t that much further in before the passage widened and brightened. They walked into a decent-sized room, lit by glowing crystals ensconced on the walls. There were open doorways at the opposite wall from where they’d entered, and steam coming from one of them.

“Percy!” Wheeljack called. “I know you know we’re here!”

“Like I have nothing better to do than keep an optic on you,” someone replied, and a red mech walked out of the steam. “Like there aren’t more important things to be looking for.” He smiled, though, gentling the words, and nodded at Rodimus. “Hello. I’m Perceptor. The baths are ready.”

“I’m Rodimus,” Rodimus replied. He wasn’t sure which of Perceptor’s optics to look at – one was blue, normal, but the other was covered by some form of monocle that kept zooming in and out. “Wheeljack said you saw us.”

“I did. You were walking in circles. This storm could have ended you.” He paused for a moment, monocle zooming in. “There aren’t any more, Jackie.”

“Good.” Wheeljack pulled his cloak off with a groan. “Wasn’t relishing going back out there. Come on, you lot, there are baths with your designations on them.”

“Not literally,” Perceptor interrupted. “We don’t put designations on baths. Just pick one. And please don’t splash on the floor, it’ll take ages to dry. The storm will last for another day or so, so you’ll have plenty of time to soak.”

“How do you know?” Springer asked curiously. “That the storm will end in a day or so?”

Perceptor tilted his head back and looked at the ceiling. “I checked the cloud layer.”

Rodimus looked up at the metal ceiling. There were no gaps, no holes, they were quite a bit underground, and there was a storm raging outside. He met Springer’s optics, and Springer shrugged.

“Right, then,” Rodimus said. “Bath time, mechs?”

Rodimus stayed submerged in the hot oil until he couldn’t take it anymore and his tanks were pinging him incessantly. Then he rose and dried off, careful to not drip all over the floor. He was the last one back in the main room, where Wheeljack was busy setting out cubes and trays of treats. Perceptor was wandering back and forth, monocle zooming in and out, and rattling off phrases that sounded more random than not – “the East road is blocked, but he doesn’t know that”, “the Plateau opened up again, but no losses this time”, “the competition’s fast, but he’s faster, he’s always faster”. None of what he said seemed connected, and none of it made much sense either.

“Alright,” Magnus said, once Rodimus had taken a seat as well. “Now that we’re all here, will you answer our question?”

“What’s our question?” Rodimus asked, helping himself to one of the treats.

“How they knew we were out there,” Springer replied. “They can’t have heard or seen us, not from here. The roof above is too thick.”

“Right.” Rodimus nodded. “That’s a good question.”

“We did see ya,” Wheeljack replied. He handed Kup an energon cube. “Well, Perceptor did. He can see to the end of the world.”

Springer scoffed. “That’s not possible.”

“Don’t say something’s impossible just because you don’t have the capability of doing it yourself,” Perceptor replied, with a bit more bite than he’d had before but still less than Springer deserved. “It is possible. I am doing it.”

“We’re grateful for your intervention,” Magnus said diplomatically. “This is far preferable to wandering through the storm for another day.”

“I’d say so. Percy, stop looking at things and come sit.” Wheeljack snagged Perceptor’s arm as he walked past and dragged him down on the bench. “Fuel. Talk. The world ain’t going anywhere.”

“How do you know if you’re not the one watching it,” Perceptor replied, a bit sullenly, but he complied.

“You saw us out in the storm?” Rodimus asked. “How?”

“This.” Perceptor tapped the monocle over his right optic. “Wheeljack exaggerated its capabilities a little, though. It can’t compensate for the curvature of the planet, so I can’t quite see to the end of the world, but I get by.”

Rodimus stared at him.

“Anyway,” Wheeljack said, breaking the increasingly awkward silence. “What were you doing anyway, stumbling around in the desert like that? Where are you headed?”

“Let me answer that question with another question.” Rodimus looked at Perceptor. “Can you see the princes of Vos?”

“Vos.” Perceptor’s monocle zoomed out, then in. “Yes. The Winglord of Vos is on his throne, but he’s alone. He’s frowning. The princes…” Zoom in. “I can only see the one prince. The eldest, I believe? White, red and blue, handsome but sad, sealed inside a… crystal pyramid? How?”

“It’s a galdr spell,” Kup replied. “Can’t see the other two?”

“His brothers are… not there.” Perceptor frowned. “They’re not in Vos. And Vos itself is grieving.” He looked at Rodimus. “Where are they?”

“Look west,” Rodimus murmured. “To the far mountains.”

“That’s almost beyond my reach,” Perceptor warned, and the monocle zoomed way in. “But… yes. There he is, the second eldest. Iron binds him to the mountain top, and there are creatures flying around him and lightning flashing over his head. He’s straining against the bonds.”

Wheeljack’s optics were sharp and focused on Rodimus.

“Now the south,” Rodimus said. “Somewhere deep, somewhere underground.”

Zoom out, and then a hiss. “Oh, the poor youngling. They have him locked up, blindfolded, deep in the filthy darkness. He’s upset and calling for his brothers. There’s a mech watching him, examining him, one optic shining in the darkness.”

“That’s what you’re doing here,” Wheeljack said. He sounded angry, but not at Rodimus. “You’re chasing the princes of Vos.”

Kup nodded. “Skywarp and Thundercracker were taken. Rodimus here has been promised to Starscream of Vos, but the king won’t honor the agreement with the younger princes missing. He’s sealed Starscream in the Glass Pyramid, and there he’ll stay until his brothers are returned.”

Perceptor shook his head. “It’s a brave errand, certainly, but it might be a fool’s errand as well. The four of you against the might of the miners down south, and those creatures on the mountain? How do you plan to succeed?”

“I don’t know yet.” Rodimus shrugged. “I figured we’d find them first, and then come up with a plan. And now you’ve confirmed for us that they’re both alive, which is good. So we’re continuing south as soon as the storm passes, to get Skywarp. Then we’ll head west, to get Thundercracker.”

Perceptor stood up from the table and walked to a shelf along the wall, where he picked up a small box. “If you’re going into that blasted Pit, you’ll need this.” He placed the box before Rodimus. “Take it with you.”

Carefully, Rodimus nudged the lid open. Inside was a monocle much like Perceptor’s, but smaller.

“It won’t let you see to the end of the world,” Perceptor said with a faint smile. “But it will let you see through the smoke and the dark and the grit down there, and help you find your way back out.”

“Thank you.” Rodimus picked up the monocle and put it in place. Nothing much really happened. “This will be very helpful. We can return it on our way back?”

Perceptor waved that away. “Keep it. I haven’t worn it in ages, it’s good that it can be useful again.”

“Wear it in the dark, so you’ll get used to how it works,” Wheeljack said. “It can be a bit of a learning curve. And who knows, ya might see something that would have passed ya by otherwise.”

“I will wear it.” Rodimus put the monocle back into the box and slipped the box into subspace. “Perceptor, do you know how far it is to where they’re keeping Skywarp?”

“It’s hard to say. A week or so at least, as the seeker flies, but you’re grounded. Might be two weeks, three weeks, even more. The terrain between here and there isn’t the easiest to traverse.” His monocle zooms out again. “I’ll keep an optic on you.”

Rodimus wasn’t sure how much good that would do. But it was nice of him anyway.

Kup stood. “You younglings might want to stay up a while longer, but I’m done. We’re moving on tomorrow.” He nodded at their hosts. “Thank you for your help.”

“You’re welcome.” Perceptor smiled that faint smile again. “Come, I’ll show you where you can recharge. We don’t have much space, but you’re welcome to the floors.”

Rodimus made it simple. He moved to the bench Kup had vacated, and stretched out there. “I’ll stay here. Wake me if you need me, yeah?”

At least they wouldn’t have to set a watch for the night.

**Author's Note:**

> I've made a google document where the individual fairytale elements and other Norwegian-inspired elements are explained. [It's here, if you want to read it.](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mYWnDYywxuCXcSyYkpoVTayIICe70bkpqOAtO6MgBaQ/edit?usp=sharing) It will be updated for each chapter as well :)


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